Lapeer West connection coaches Grand Rapids Christian to first state football championship

Grand Rapids Christian quarterback Alex VanDeVusse celebrates a long touchdown run against Orchard Lake St. Mary's during first half action of the Division 3 state championship game at Ford Field in Detroit on Nov. 24, 2012.File

FLINT, MI -- It's been nearly two decades since Jeremy Fellows and Eric Ross found themselves embroiled in one of the most dramatic high school football championship games in state history.

The pair, also cousins, were part of Lapeer West's spirited rally against South Lyon in the Class A final at the Pontiac Silverdome. The Panthers tied the game late before watching Jason Lehotan's field goal win it 24-21 in double overtime.

Fellows is now Grand Rapids Christian's offensive coordinator and Ross the defensive coordinator. As usual, they were seated next to each other in the booth calling plays and had just watched defending champion Orchard Lake St. Marys snare a 37-34 advantage with just over two minutes remaining in the wild, see-saw contest.

"I learned over and said to Eric, 'You watch, this is going to end just like our game in 1995'," Fellows said. "I just knew we were going to at least send it into overtime and win there. We had no worries because of the kind of team we have this year. It was just surreal to experience those same feelings 17 years later and watch it happen."

Indeed, GR Christian kicker Joel Schipper tied the game with a 28-yard field goal with just four seconds remaining before his 27-yarder won it on the Eagles' first play of overtime, 40-37.

In between, GR Christian's defense delivered when OLSM got the ball first in overtime, stopping the Eaglets on fourth down at the three-yard line.

The Eagles' Lapeer West connection does not end with Fellows and Ross. Head coach Don Fellows, a Waterford Kettering graduate, is Jeremy's older brother, who did his student teaching at West and was a varsity assistant there during the 1997-98 school year.

Don Fellows immediately sent Schipper out for the winning kick.

"Just like (former Lapeer West coach) Jeff Putnam did in our game, we did not hesitate to send our kicker out there right away and risk anything especially since we knew we just needed a field goal," Fellows said.

There was no doubt in Ross' mind either.

"All along, despite how it was going back and forth and we did have some defensive problems in that game, I was always like 'We got this'," Ross said. "The team this year had that special bond you don't see very often and they were not going to be denied. It was very much like the teams we were on at West."

GR Christian prevailed despite giving up a finals record 579 yards of total offense. The teams combined for a record 1,033 yards. The Eagles finished 13-1, their lone loss coming at the hands of nationally-ranked Cincinnati Moeller which is playing for Ohio's Division 1 state championship Saturday.

There were heroes aplenty for GR Christian, but Michigan State-bound receiver Drake Harris was the difference, hauling in eight receptions for a finals-record 243 yards and a touchdown. He caught passes twice on fourth down to keep the game-tying drive alive. Harris is the first receiver in Michigan history and just the 12th nationally to finish with more than 2,000 yards in a season.

"It does not hurt to have a combination like Drake and our quarterback Alex Van DeVusse because we can do so many things with players like that and the others we have," Fellows said. "They are high school kids, but we were able to implement a college-type offensive scheme and they perfected it. I could actually do things with these kids I could not with some of the offenses I coach in college."

Fellows was offensive coordinator at Dubuque (Iowa) University and Stonehill College, both NCAA Division 2 schools, before joining Eagles staff in 2011.

"To win such an emotional game, to experience many of the same feelings I did when we won the title at West was just unreal," Jeremy said. "All three of us also looked up during the celebration and thanked our late grandfather (Don Roehl). He is the one who started us in football and coached us in youth leagues. An incredible man, for sure. Once we got back to the hotel I told Eric that I was drained of emotions."

Ross compared winning a championship as a player and coach.

"When you are young, you feel there is time to experience something like that again and you just get caught up in the moment," he said. "As a coach, you have things more in perspective and obviously to be able to share this with family and work toward making this happen with Don and Jeremy is just an amazing experience we are all thankful for."

That the threesome is even coaching together is somewhat of a miracle itself.

In 2009, they were spread throughout the country. Jeremy was in his first season at Stonehill College in Easton, Mass. while Don was offensive coordinator at College of the Canyons in Santa Clarita, Calif. Ross was in his sixth season as a defensive assistant at Dubuque University in Iowa, having coached with Jeremy there the previous five years.

The next year, Don decided to return to Michigan and resume his high school teaching and coaching career at GR Christian after previous head coaching stints at Mesick and Muskegon Mona Shores.

Next, Don needed to fill out his staff and made his first call without hesitation.

"Once I took the job in Grand Rapids, I had to have Eric running my defense," said Don, All-American quarterback at Huron (S.D.) University. "I really was not sure he was going to leave Iowa, but luckily he decided to. I was kind of persistent. Eric has a great football mind and does a phenomenal job with the kids."

The decision was actually not difficult for Ross.

"It's been an amazing experience here and I am glad I made the move," said Ross, who also played for Huron and is an operations manager for MVP Sports Clubs. "Nothing beats coaching with family like this, easily the best staff I have been a part of."

For Jeremy, something clicked after his grandfather passed away in 2010 and it led to his return to Michigan and joining Don's staff.

"We also had just had our second child at the time and while I was hoping to become a college head coach one day, things changed," said Jeremy, who played for Albion College and works for Eikenhout, a building materials supplier. "I asked my wife 'Why are we running all over the country chasing a dream when all the family that is important to us is in Michigan?' I don't regret coming back and coaching with Don and Eric for a second."

The Eagles' offense was especially explosive this season under Jeremy's guidance, averaging 42 points and 452 yards per game.

"I might be a little biased, but I consider Jeremy the best offensive coordinator in the state," said Don, who actually predicted a state championship for his team last summer. "I have been a college offensive coordinator, but I trust Jeremy with our offense. He was a college coach on the rise, but decided to coach here and we are lucky he did. Both he and Eric now what it takes to win titles and that gives them instant credibility with the kids."

Don Fellows now has a 30-6 record in three seasons at GR Christian. The school's all-time winning percentage prior to his arrival was .426.

"I have to say that I value the time I spent at West and working under coach Putnam and (current West head coach) Mike Smith," Don said. "They taught me about being loyal to each other as a coaching staff and how to have an impact on kids. I also admired the sense of community and tradition the West football program has. That's what I have tried to build here."

The trio's coaching success hardly surprises Smith, a defensive assistant at West from 1985-97 before becoming head coach.

"Both Jeremy and Eric were very dedicated and worked exceptionally hard to become good football players," Smith said. "They take coaching very seriously and work hard to find ways to improve much the same as they did as players. As a young coach, Don was very knowledgeable and driven with the potential to become a great coach."